Sheet Pan Ratatouille with Rosemary Chicken for Cinderella – Eat Like A Princess

This easy sheet pan meal is perfect for late summer produce. This Ratatouille with Rosemary Baked Chicken is ready in under 40 minutes and your children will love trying this Cinderella inspired recipe!

I hate to admit it, but even though I am supposed to be a “family weeknight meals” food blogger, some days my kids can be totally stubborn about trying something new. Yes, we have had many evenings where my kids have cried, gagged, choked, and sat there until their food was gross and cold because they wouldn’t even try a single bite. It’s totally infuriating. And irritating.

And it makes me want to yell and scream – because HELLO! am I supposed to share this awesomely gorgeous and delicious meals that I totally love and tell everyone its perfect for families if my children are sitting at the table acting like I am feeding them poisoned rat livers? UGH!

Unfortunately we don’t all have a fairy godmother who will swoop in, sing a fun song, wave her magic wand and transform our stubborn and picky eaters into little foodies who eat and love every bite (doesn’t that just sound amazing, though?). However, I do have something that is second best!

Welcome to the Eat Like A Princess Series!

I designed this series as a fun way to teach my daughters about new cultures through the classic Princesses in hopes that they will become more open to trying new foods, to understand other cultures better, and to enjoy exploring the world around them. All while still:

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A Little Cinderella History

Everyone is familiar with the Cinderella story, and it is one that girls everywhere love to love.

I mean, who doesn’t love the idea of a regular girl who works hard and dreams big to one day catch a lucky break (hello, fairy godmother) and meet the prince of her dreams – who of course falls madly in love with her? I mean… yeah…

The versions of this tale that we are most used to today are fashioned around the late 1800’s, based on the fact that –

the ball gowns have crinolines (the structured petticoat) and/or are bustled

the men are all wearing military style jackets as formal wear

As to where this movie supposedly takes place, well – that’s a bit harder. From the research that I did (yes, I did research, and it was just as ridiculous as you can imagine), this story as we know it today gets most of its references from either French or German culture – making me guess that it is probably a small country along the border of the two.

I decided to model this Cinderella inspired recipe after more of a French type recipe than a German one (mainly because I have more typically German recipes coming later in the series and also because Cinderella is derived from the French word Cendrillon, which in English translates to “little ash girl”).

Typically Ratatouille was more of a peasant dish from the south of France, and something that was cooked on the stovetop. Through time it has evolved into a more complicated dish – often with each vegetable receiving an olive oil bath before being cooked to perfection individually, and taking about two hours from start to finish.

That’s all well and great, and once upon a time I would have taken the extra care to do all the steps perfectly. However, I do not have a fairy godmother at my disposal.

I have hungry children and busy nights – so I have simplified this Cinderella inspired recipe to be under 40 minutes and to also include some easy baked chicken.

This easy sheet pan meal magically transforms everyday garden veggies and herbs into a perfectly roasted, aromatic, and melt-in-your-mouth comfort food. Guaranteed to whisk any princess off her feet!

**Note: This recipe is not intended to be 100% authentic. Cinderella is a fictional character, from a fictional land, and this recipe was created by me. This recipe is intended to be easy enough that children can help you prepare it and hopefully enjoy it. It is supposed to be a fun way to get kids interested in eating veggies, not an authentic recipe. It is my hope that it is interesting enough to pique their interest in new cultures and foods without being too intense or weird.

Get your Kids in the Kitchen:

Children aged 0-3 can help you get the thyme and rosemary ready, help drizzle on olive oil, toss the veggies, add salt and pepper, and set the table.

Children aged 4-7 can help you cut up the zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, and tomatoes and can carefully (with supervision) place the rosemary sprigs on the chicken.

Children aged 8-12 can help you do all the above plus season the chicken breasts.

Sheet Pan Ratatouille with Rosemary Chicken for Cinderella – Eat Like A Princess

★★★★★

5 from 8 reviews

This easy sheet pan meal is perfect for late summer produce. This Ratatouille with Rosemary Baked Chicken is ready in under 40 minutes and your children will love trying a recipe that Cinderella would have enjoyed!

Jenni lives in Des Moines, Iowa with her amazing husband, two girls, two dogs who think they are children, and a feisty cat. She is the creator of The Gingered Whisk, a recipe blog dedicated to finding easy, healthy-ish, and tasty weeknight meals that kids and adults alike will love. She is super passionate about helping every member of a family learn to love great food. When not cooking, eating, or thinking about food, she is often hiking around area parks, creating intricate legos castles with her girls, watching nerdy tv with her husband, or curled up in a corner somewhere reading a good book.

I love your princess series recipes! Such a fun and great idea and I’m definitely going to borrow it for when my daughter is older. The recipe looks delicious, healthy, and easy. Perfect for adults and kids!

About Me

Hey You! Welcome to The Gingered Whisk! My name is Jenni, and I'm an Iowa girl and a mom of two. I empower parents and kids alike to explore the world of food, to discover easy & healthy weeknight meals, & to become little foodies through creative culinary adventures!